The Wolf's Maw
by Extreme Touch
Summary: Hoping for a fresh start, Krista accidently marches into the mouth of misfortune. Highschool AU Yuri Krista Historia Ymir
1. March

"Don't ever let a man believe he can be your everything, Krista." Smoke and words came out as one. The kitchen was in a veil of smoke—one from her mom and the other from the burnt toast. Looking at the clock, her mother stamped out her cigarette as she stood up and gave herself a quick mist of perfume.

"And don't start smoking either. It makes you smell horrible. Men don't like that." She quickly added with a sigh. Her mom took a step towards the mirror in the kitchen, refreshing her lips with lipstick. Her blue eyes had wrinkles of exhaustion and maybe even a hangover.

It wasn't long before her mom's cellphone began to ring again. Krista knew immediately who it was. He had been calling all night and morning since her mom came back from a mixer night with a 'coworker'.

"I don't have time to talk to the likes of you. I have work, unlike your stupid cult you lead." Her mother spat. She was pacing to and fro before giving another glance at the clock and cursing. She quickly took off towards the door to the garage to leave before standing extremely still. She took the phone from her ear and stared at it with rage.

"Oh yeah? Why don't you tell your wife that!" She slapped the phone shut and left. The ominous clacking of her heels echoed until the roar of the car erupted. In seconds, her mom sped out of their driveway and off to work. Krista felt like she was frozen with her fork in her hand, mouth shut, staring at her runny eggs and burnt toast. Krista took her untouched plate and quickly set foot to the backyard. The crude fencing had gaps in between the posts—perfect for her neighbor's dog to fit through. Instantly, at the sound of Krista scraping the food on the ground, ecstatic noises were heard beyond the fence. Soon enough through the hole entered a stubby and happy bulldog.

"Here, Sally." Krista knelt down. She watched the dog gobble up the food. Krista went to petting the dog with a small smile. The bulldog laid down, rolled onto its back and started wiggling in an odd fashion. Krista gave into the dog's antics and started to rub its belly.

"I'm excited, too," she stood up, "I'm starting high school today."

The bulldog seemed indifferent to Krista's talking as it laid still.

"Wish me luck." She went back to her house, putting the plate into the sink, and went out to catch the bus. The summer morning was nice. The air was refreshing compared to the kitchen. The bus stop was further away than her middle school's stop. It went past Mikasa's and Bertolt's house. She had moved to their neighborhood at the beginning of middle school. While she wasn't close to Mikasa like she was to Bertolt, they held a strong, unsaid respect as long as she didn't make fun of Eren.

As she began to make her way down their street, Bertolt had left his house. Meeting Krista at the end of his driveway, he gave her a friendly smile.

"Excited for high school?" He asked. Krista gave a nod.

"A bit nervous," she admitted. Bertolt gave a frown. For a moment, his usual, happy face was gone.

"Middle school is past you. High school is a lot better. You'll find a niche where you'll make good friends," he reassured. Krista couldn't bring herself to say she truly believed him. Middle school was dreadful and a place where she thought of her own prison. The boys never gave her a hard time, but the worst came from the girls. They talked of her like she was the reason for everything gone wrong. She could never understand why.

"Trust me, it'll get better." Bertolt's voice could've fooled her, but he was always known to be a bit too hopeful. He was a good friend though. They both had their share of harder times. He was shy and unconfident while she was…well, she still didn't know what was wrong with her. They became friends because they both found solace in the library where not many went.

"Hey, Bertolt," a roar of an engine came from behind them. Krista and Bertolt stopped to glance back to see two blonds in a beat down rig.

"Oh, so your dad finally did cave?" Bertolt laughed.

"Yep! This is my baby now." Reiner patted the car door with pride. The girl in the passenger seat didn't seem as enthused.

"It's a total piece of junk." Annie spoke. Reiner gave her a glare, but went back to smiling. He roared the engine again.

"Show off."

"Hey, I can leave you right here! You can walk to school!" Reiner shot his smaller friend a warning.

"I'd rather than be seen with you and this piece of shit."

"Come on now. It's just morning." Bertolt put up his hands with a sheepish smile.

"You going to hop in?" Reiner asked, roaring his engine again.

"Sure," Bertolt turned towards Krista.

"Did you want a ride, too? I'm sure Reiner wouldn't mind, would you?"

"N-No! Of course not!"

Krista gave the two boys a smile.

"Not today. Thank you, though." To be honest, she didn't feel that social. She wanted to relax on her first day. While it'd be a good impression to walk in with upperclassmen, it'd also mean she'd be introduced to a lot of strangers. She could hear Annie almost snicker as Reiner's face turned red.

"Next time," Bertolt hopped into the barely managing car as the trio took off. She could almost be envious of the spot Bertolt had. To be with two childhood friends, growing up together, and probably forever with hardly a care for anything else but them. Krista shook her head with a smile. Those three…always together, running around. At the end of the street was the bus stop. While Krista had to admit she hoped to see nobody familiar on the bus, she knew it'd be inevitable. There were only a few other schools in their small city. She had her eyes on the hardest one in hopes that she'd meet people who were too busy looking after their own future than pay attention to her. By a miracle and hard work, she was able to barely slide past the entrance exams.

The bus came into view and she held her breath. This was a time for change. For something good to happen.

The door opened in a soft whirl. She stepped on and took a glance on the bus. While a lot of faces were new, some weren't. She felt her throat constrict as she quickly sat down in the front. She didn't know who she sat by except that she just wanted to disappear. She kept her eyes forward as she prayed that the girls would let her be, or hopefully, just maybe, not recognize her at all.

As the bus jerked forward, she got her wish. There wasn't the moist, stick spit wads, or a nasty, crinkled note thrown at her face. There wasn't a 'oops, did I say that out loud?' sneer or the haunting song of 'Easy Kristy'. There was peace, but Krista could feel the glares on her neck. She knew that their old sentiment was still there. It left her throat dry as she wanted to duck and hide her face. She could only think that they held themselves in check for first-impressions. What would they do once they were alone? The bus ride was long to Krista. She kept waiting for the girls to get brave and finally make their move, but it never came. She was steeling herself for anything to happen. She was so deep in her self-protection that she barely noticed the bus had stopped and people were exiting.

"You getting up yet?" Her seat partner finally spoke. Krista glanced over to meet unfazed brown eyes. They gave her a once over as if searching for something.

"O-oh yeah." Krista quickly jumped out of her seat to allow the other girl to get out. Krista's eyes widened. When the girl got up, Krista was dwarfed beside her tall stature. She was tall like the boys, but couldn't be mistaken as one. Her fashion sense was a bit too keen to verge onto manly. Krista was in a daze that she hadn't noticed who she sat by—especially someone so…intimidating.

"Miss, you're pretty cold." The bus drive spoke to Krista. She flinched.

"What? I'm sorry. I wasn't paying attention." She hadn't realized.

"She asked your name…didn't you hear her?" The man sat back in his chair and took out a handkerchief.

"You best be getting out, or you'll be late." He nodded at her. Krista quickly left the bus and went into the throng of students. She felt embarrassed that she didn't answer the girl's question. She didn't even hear the girl ask. Now, she doubted she'd see the girl again until tomorrow to apologize.

"Hey, Krista, you're in my class, right?" A short, feminine boy came up to her. She smiled and pulled out her schedule.

"Yeah, we are." Krista felt somewhat relieved she'd have Armin in her class. He was always friendly and gentle, despite being picked on for looking a lot like a girl. However, he was lucky enough to have Eren defending him. Though the real scare was Mikasa.

"Great. I was afraid I wouldn't be with anyone else. Eren already got into a fight. Mikasa has advance classes than us. So I'm on my own today." Armin gave a relieved smile. In the distance, almost towering above others, she could see the girl before.

"Hey, Armin, who's that?" She pointed. Armin squinted ahead.

"The tall girl?"

"Yeah."

"Um…She went to the same middle school as us. She was an upperclassmen." He couldn't think of her name. While he knew Reiner and those who were popular, the girl before him was barely a shadow amongst the rest.

"So you don't know her name?" Krista was a bit disappointed. She was hoping she could avoid her if it came to it. She was embarrassed and had a feeling the tomboy didn't like to be crossed. Who knew if not answering her question would get Krista a new enemy…

"Why, did she do something to you?" Armin's eyes were narrow as his face was suddenly serious. Krista glanced back up to see the girl had disappeared again.

"No. Not at all. I was just curious," Krista readjusted her backpack as they neared the entrance of the building. She wished she could get a better look at the girl again.

As if she was summoned, the girl was leaning against the wall beside the entrance. A cigarette was in her hand as she stared at it. By her was a smaller boy with a crew cut.

"Hey, dog breath, can't you wait?" Krista heard above the crowd as the boy snatched the cigarette away from her. The taller girl looked like she was going to do something until she spotted Krista. Krista couldn't take her eyes away in curiosity and fear.

"Hey! You listening to me?!"

Krista could feel Armin tense up, too, once the attention was on them. The taller girl turned towards them, making them freeze.

"Welcome," the taller girl began to mockingly bow, "to the Scouting Legion High School, named after some old man."  
Armin frowned.

"Why are you doing that?" He wasn't going to sit around to be mocked at. Eren's bad behavior was starting to rub off on him. Krista, however, couldn't move.

"It'd be rude if I didn't bow for a Goddess." She gave a wolfish smirk. Armin glared at the girl before them and took Krista's hand.

"Let's go." He pulled her away as Krista wasn't sure how to feel. A Goddess? Who even said that these days? She felt her stomach sour. It seems like Bertolt was wrong. She'd have bullies wherever she went. The students were shuffling to the auditorium for the first-day-of-school speech. In the tight mass of them, Krista felt like she wanted to turn and go home. She had hopes today would be without any problems, that Bertolt's words were honest. But it was worse. Someone she didn't even know was already making fun of her. The girl's mocking expressions and merciless eyes bore into her mind. Armin kept hold of her though as they took their seats near Mikasa. At least now they were safe.

"Welcome, students, to the brand new year at the Scouting Legion High School. This school is in honor of Brimir Jotnar Scouting and his unfaltering dedication in the advance research of medicine. With his passion for helping others, he has built this school to allow those with the same passion a leap towards their future."

_Welcome to the school, Goddess. _The words kept echoing in her head along with the smirk that was the very image of middle school and its tortures.

_Welcome to your new cage, Krista._

* * *

**A/N:  
I told myself I wouldn't do it, but, God, did this idea just seduce me. I personally really dislike high school AUs, but here I am slipping down its slippery slope. Either way, please leave any sort of feedback as it makes me happy~**


	2. Reach

"Who was that," Krista could only keep asking Armin as he spoke around. A few people didn't seem to care, or didn't know her. The halls were emptying as second period was about to begin.

"Nobody seems to know, or they just don't care." Armin kept glancing around as if she was lurking nearby to throw another insult.

"Goddess," Armin scoffed.

"What a weird way to be an ass," Armin took Krista's hand again.

"Let's get going to second period. Don't want to be late." He spoke, but his mind was elsewhere. She could tell her was trying to figure out her name and person. His brows were furrowed.

From around the corner, a small boy sped past them into their second class. Krista and Armin glanced at each other.

"That was the boy who was with that girl," Armin stated. The boy quickly sat near the last two empty seats. The smell of cigarettes stuck to his leather jacket and had begun to overwhelm the room.

"He doesn't seem intimidating," Krista quietly spoke as they walked towards the seats besides the almost bald kid. He was giggling and laughing with some nearby students. Despite his punk outfit, he had a caring air about him that Krista couldn't brush off. She noticed that Armin was picking up on his aura, too.

"Connie, you smell horrible." One of the students covered their nose. The boy responded with a groan.

"Blame the hag. She dragged me out of the assembly for a quick smoke." He shrugged with another sigh. Krista frowned that he didn't say the girl's name.

"What hag?" Armin spoke up. Connie glanced at the two with surprise until he recognized.

"Oh, hey, name's Connie. Sorry about earlier. She usually doesn't pick on people before lunch." He apologetically smiled. Krista was intrigued by his demeanor compared to earlier. He was courteous and a bit rough around the edges, but sincere. She could just tell from their second run-through.

"Who was she?" Krista asked again. Connie wasn't fazed about their eagerness to know her name.

"Ymir, class slacker," he shrugged her off.

"There isn't much going on for her." His voice and tone had changed when talking about her. He scratched the back of his neck with an annoyed look.

"And bully," Armin questioningly stated.

"Sure, I guess if you want to put it that way." He grumbled.

"How about we just stop talking about her? She's boring." Connie whined. Krista nodded. It didn't sound like much good came from the girl. She sounded like a sore thumb in this type of school. Wouldn't they have kicked her out for slacking by now?

"Hn," Armin agreed. They got the information they needed on who they had to avoid.

"Can't believe she scored high though," Connie persisted. Armin was already busy unpacking his books to hear their classmate's grumbles.

"Advance classes my ass." He slapped a book down on his desk. Krista found it hard to believe that the girl she saw was smart. She had judgmental eyes, but… there was nothing in them. Just a dull brown. Her expressions didn't exude any sort of wisdom or advance intelligence. She just looked bored until she made fun of them.

* * *

Krista felt her back ache at the amount of books they were given in each class. While she was expecting a workload, which they did receive, she didn't take it in a literal sense.

"Looks like a busy night," Bertolt met up with her for the bus ride home.

"Yeah, I suppose so." She could feel her arms hurt at the strain.

All of a sudden, she felt something snatch her backpack away from her and the instant relief. She could only savor it for a moment's time before realizing what had happened. Someone took her back pack. Bertolt frowned as he watched the one to blame come into view.

"Give it back," Krista pleaded. Ymir glanced down at the smaller girl before smiling and keep walking to their bus.

"Stop!" Krista cried again while chasing after Ymir. The taller girl stepped onto the bus and out of view. She could hear the familiar laughter of her middle school bullies. She quickly jumped onto the bus to see the girl sitting in the front where Krista last sat. Right beside her, unharmed, was her backpack. Ymir was glancing out the window.

"Did you do something to it?" Krista ventured as she took her backpack and thoroughly searched and examined it. Ymir tilted her head towards Krista.

"No," she stated.

"Why did you steal it from me then?" Krista frowned. What game was she playing at? Stealing her backpack like that and not doing—

"You looked like it was hurting you. So I took it and put it on your seat for you." Ymir's face was untouchable with emotion. Her voice was static. Nothing could be retrieved from those impenetrable eyes.

Krista felt herself blush at the accusations she threw at the innocent, cigarette-reeking girl. She quietly sat down beside her with shame.

"Ah, I'm sorry," Krista squeaked in forgiveness.

"Don't worry. You had a right to be suspicious," Ymir leaned into her seat, putting her arms behind her head. Krista wasn't sure what else to say. The girl was very strange. She had no aura of consideration like Connie, nor did she seem any friendlier. She was more intimidating now that she spoke. It felt like Krista had to dance around the conversation and one false move would garner a jab.

"What classes do you have?" Again, the girl spoke. It made Krista nervous.

"Um, well—"

"Actually, forget it." The girl's face turned away towards the window. Krista felt her mouth dry up as she closed it. What was with her? One minute she wants to talk and another she could care less.

It was an odd sensation that Krista couldn't describe. She never knew a person who could be so unapproachable.

* * *

A long green skirt, pristine white shirt, blond hair, and eyes that were filled with kindness. In the distance of middle school, Ymir could see anything she wanted. There was hardly anyone taller than her. She could see all.

When the girl named Krista would walk by, the boys would make room and smile at her. The girls would feel envious and bitter towards her. Yet, Krista didn't waver to notice what an effect she had on everyone. She was blinded by her own agenda to observe the girls' jealousy or accept the boys' admirations. She was untouched by the stigma that came from her beauty, and ignorant to it.

Ymir felt her throat dry every time she went by. She knew what it was, but also knew she was young. Nothing good came from relationships in middle school. It tainted the love and youth they had. It would crumble and degrade to annoyance and mistakes.

But, every time Krista would go by, Ymir felt her hand reach out to grabs her.

"Easy Kristy," one girl yelled in the hall as a trash can was kicked in front of Krista' path. Ymir glared and quickly stamped over, but suddenly felt stricken. Krista glanced back, tears in her eyes, but she did not see Ymir. She saw the crowd of girls that laughed and the boys that shamefully looked away.

She wanted to go to Krista, hold her hand, and walk her to her next class. She wanted to scare away all those who tempted to hurt Krista. But…her feet could not move, she could barely breathe, and her heart's beats were loud in her ears. She couldn't bring herself to talk to Krista, or be by her. A deep fear of rejection and misunderstanding of the girl's motives plagued Ymir's heart.

She could only watch as Krista took the teasing and bullying each day and continue to smile. To persevere despite those who masked their jealousy with wrath. The fear held her back. She couldn't do a thing.

But…Ymir could see all in the halls of the middle school. When Krista would be near, she'd feel her hands tremble, attempting to reach.


End file.
